Asia markets set to open mostly higher after fragile Iran-U.S. ceasefire deal

In this article .N225 .AXJO Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT An electronic stock board displays the Nikkei 225 Stock Average outside a securities firm in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 28, 2025. Toru Hanai | Bloomberg | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets were set to open mostly higher, as investors assess the implications of President Donald Trump's decision to suspend attacks on Iran for two weeks. "I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks," Trump said in a Truth Social post . "We received a 10-point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate." However, the "double sided" ceasefire was contingent on Iran agreeing to reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran, meanwhile, agreed to reopen the waterway for the next two weeks, if attacks on the country were halted, according to a statement from Iran's Foreign Minister. Israel has also agreed to the ceasefire, media reports said. But Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, later on Wednesday, accused the U.S. of violating the ceasefire agreement . The violations are the denial of the Islamic Republic's right to enrich uranium and Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon, a drone's entry into Iranian airspace, he said. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was trading at 56,735, while its counterpart in Osaka was last at 57,000. That compared against the Nikkei 225's last close at 56,308.42. Hang Seng futures last traded at 25,859, compared with the index's last close of 25,893.02 In Australia, futures last traded at 8,967.0, while the S&P/ASX 200 's closed at 8,951.80. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.1%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 32 points, or less than 0.1%. Overnight in the U.S., stocks surged after President Donald Trump suspended attacks on Iran for two weeks, pausing a five-week conflict that closed a crucial waterway for global energy supplies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ripped 1...